Matilda Zafar Hayashi
Matilda is the main protagonist of the comic, The Queen's Ransom. She is the descendant of Asuke and Zakaria Hayashi, and one of very few humans on planet Earth. Past Matilda grew up surrounded by family. Her parents, though they were often absent, loved her and her siblings very much. She had a twin brother and sister, Albus and Ruth, who were eight years younger than her, another brother named Ivan, who was three years younger, an older brother named Felix, who was two years older, and another sister, Lucia, who was five years older. Matilda was very close with all of her siblings. When Matilda was 16, her mother began to grow ill in her old age. Because of this, Matilda was forced to take on a motherly role to care for her younger siblings as her older siblings had moved away. Zakaria, Matilda's mother, was unable to work due to her being sick and bedbound, this caused the family to struggle financially as Matilda's father worked day and night to provide for his dying wife and many children. The family lived like this for years, just barely getting by. When Matilda was 18, she deemed her brother, Ivan, old enough to take care of their mother and younger siblings, and she left to earn money for her family. Matilda found work wherever she could, and she would deliver her earnings to her family's house, but she would never face them. It didn't take long for her to see that the money she was earning still wasn't enough, so she began to steal to provide for her family. At first she would simply take the change out of passerby's pockets, always going unnoticed, but in time, she began stealing more valuable things. Upon researching items of value that she could steal, Matilda stumbled upon a reading about a relic - a ring that could grant magnificent powers to the wearer. It was supposedly hidden somewhere in the Manakiyan forest. It seemed to be tremendously valuable, so she set out to find it. She soon learned that she was not the only one looking for it, Lunalei also sought out the ring. Long story short, Matilda was able to retrieve the ring and flee before Lunalei could catch her and arrest her for her crimes. Ultimately, Matilda was disappointed with the outcome, she was unable to take the off the ring to sell, and the resulting powers of the ring were weak. She was irritated by this, but mostly unfazed, so she continued her life how it was before. It takes about a month for Matilda to realize the ring is cursed. The curse presented itself as thick bark, which began to envelop her body, slowly spreading towards her heart, starting with where it lays dormant on her left ring finger. Ironically, the ring also elongates her lifespan, for she is 142 years old by the time the first chapter begins. "How ironic it is, that the thing killing me is the only thing keeping me alive." -Matilda Matilda continued to provide money for her family without their knowledge, she allowed them to believe she was dead. A year passed, and Matilda's mother died, her body simply could not continue to function with her illness. She died in bed surrounded by her whole family- minus Matilda. Mat attended the funeral in silence, with a black veil concealing her face. She watched her family grieve from afar, they never knew she was there. A month later, Matilda attended her own funeral. Her father had deemed the search for his missing daughter inconclusive, thinking that the only possibility was that she had died somewhere away from home. Matilda watched as her siblings mourned their missing sister. She stood quietly as she watched her father cry over the empty casket. She longed to comfort her weeping family, but she never did. She left without a word. Matilda continued to live her life in the shadows. She watched from a distance as her family lived on. Many of them began starting families of their own. Matilda remained the same. She watched her father closely, who had grown frail from the stress and sorrows of losing a wife and child. The next to pass was Ivan, Matilda's younger brother. He had died tragically in some kind of freak machinery accident, Matilda didn't care to learn the details of the event. She attended the funeral. Asuke's death occurred not even a year after Ivan's. The father's death shook the family to the core, but they all ultimately recovered in their own way, with their own families- excluding Matilda. Matilda stood idly by as her family slipped from her grasp. Lucia had been the next to pass three decades later in a magic accident, then Ruth, who had died another ten years later due to sickness, followed by Albus, who committed suicide only three years later. Felix, Matilda's oldest brother, was the last to pass. He was personally executed by Lunalei, with whom he had had a pact with, for treason and misuse of magic. At that point, Matilda felt utterly useless and lost. Her will to live had diminished to next to nothing. She wished for death. She would stay in bed for days, and leave only to aimlessly wander the town. She would often go to a bar, where she made friends with two of the tenders, Florence, an orc/human hybrid, and Lumiere, a demigod. Matilda, still shaken by the deaths of her family, was happy to have people to confide in, to have friends. Matilda began to slowly ease out of her depression, she once again began to feel alive. Matilda meets a short woman in the bar one day, one with webbed fingers, sharp teeth, and three eyes. That girl was going to be the death of her - literally. Appearance Matilda takes strongly after both of her parents, Asuke and Zakaria, respectively. She is taller than average, standing at 5'7, and is relatively thin, at 125lbs. Matilda has short magenta hair that is curled upwards in the front, and buzzed short on the sides. In her childhood and early teens, she can be seen with very long hair that curls at the ends. Her hair closely resembles her mother's, though it's slightly darker. Matilda's eyes are bright and golden. Her pupils are oblong and eight triangles surround her iris, resembling the rays of a sun. Her eyelashes are replaced by three dark green leaves. Her eyes are thinly shaped, a trait she inherited from her father. In the prologue, she wears a dark green skintight bodysuit with elbow-length gloves and thigh-length boots that are a lighter green. The gloves and boots are lined in gold, and she adorns a golden diamond in the middle of her chest. Her attire changes slightly after the prologue, where she wears a bodysuit of the same colors with a different collar and slightly more intricate design. She still adorns a diamond symbol, though lower on her chest. Personality Powers/Abilities Matilda was granted magical powers through a relic. Powers granted by physical objects are typically more powerful than those inheirited at birth. Matilda's relic is a ring, a golden one with an emerald that she wears on her left ring finger. Her powers extend to light magic creation/manipulation, and earth and plant bending abilities, she also exhibits superhuman strength and durability. In a fight, she will commonly envelop her entire body in thick bark that acts as armor. Matilda can also infinitely extend her left arm, the one completelyr placed by bark There are other advantages that come with the possession of the ring. Matilda does not require any kind of nutrients or rest for her body to function properly. The ring magically provides her with everything she needs to stay alive. Weaknesses At first glance, it's hard to pinpoint any weaknesses that Matilda has. Physically, she is inhumanly strong and agile and she doesn't seem to show any faults. Though, upon further inspection, it can be seen that this is not the case. Most of Matilda's weaknesses stem from inside her own mind. She is very sure of herself when she fights and has little to no regard for her own life, this causes her to make dangerous decisions, which often cause her body harm. Matilda often can get lost inside of her own mind, losing sight of the world around her. These dissociative episodes can cause her to fight in a sort of auto-pilot mode, where her moral code is abandoned, making her infinitely more dangerous and reckless. Matilda's only physical weakness seems to be the effects of the curse on her ring. She often experiences episodes of intense pain where the curse is taking its effect on her body. This can cause her to become disoriented for any amount of time between a few seconds, and a few days. Relationships Rowen Akua Zakaria Hayashi Zakaria is Matilda's mother and they were very close, despite her often being absent. Zakaria loved all of her children, but she shared a special bond with Matilda. Asuke Hayashi Lucia Hayashi Felix Hayashi Ivan Hayashi Ruth and Albus Hayashi Lumiere Kekoa Florence Duval Soliela Category:Characters